Alvis Lo Iek Long, a clinical director of the public Conde de S. Januário Hospital Centre, announced on Wednesday that the government will launch the eighth round of its facemask purchase scheme – at the fixed price of eight patacas (US$1) for 10 facemasks for local residents and non-resident workers – today.

As in the five previous rounds, the eighth round also includes facemasks tailor-made for children.

Under the scheme, which was first launched by the government on January 23, each local resident and non-resident worker is entitled to buy 10 facemasks at the fixed price of eight patacas every 10 days at designated outlets upon presentation of their original Macau ID card or work permit (informally known as “blue card”).

The sale of child facemasks was launched in the third round – which ran from February 12 to 21 – of the government’s facemask purchase scheme.

In the eighth round starting today, the arrangement for the sale of children’s facemasks is the same as in the five previous rounds. Parents or legal guardians can only buy five child facemasks with the child’s ID cards, with the remaining five for adult facemasks, or alternatively they can choose to use the whole quota of 10 for adult facemasks. The facemasks for children are only for kids aged between three and eight.

Unchanged from the previous round, there are 84 outlets for the eighth round which starts today, comprising 56 designated pharmacies, eight health centres in Macau and Taipa and two health stations in Coloane run by the Health Bureau, as well as 18 co-called service points run by the Macau Federation of Trade Unions (Gung Luen), Macau General Union of Neighbourhood Associations (Kai Fong) and Macau Women’s General Association (Fu Luen).

Child facemasks are only sold at the bureau’s health centres and health stations. The price of child facemasks is the same as for adult facemasks.

Lo said that six million facemasks were sold during the previous round of the government’s facemask purchase scheme. Since the launch of the scheme, 40 million facemasks have been sold so far.